New Leader Of India Says Government Stays Secular

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April 1, 1998

NEW DELHI — Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee told the Indian parliament Tuesday that his Hindu nationalist-led government had no religious agenda. ``India is a democracy. India will not become a theocratic state. You have my assurance,'' said Vajpayee, who heads a 13-party coalition led by his Bharatiya Janata Party. Vajpayee, seen as a moderate among party hardliners, repeatedly called for cooperation from deputies.